Car door construction



E. C. HEINEN ET AL CAR DOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed July 26, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 26, 1932.

July 26,1932. F. c. HEINEN ET AL CAR DOOR CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 26, 1929 v -NVENTOE5- /CEpE/e/CK C. HEM/5N KENNETH J TG5/N Patented July 26, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FREDERICK C. HEINEN AND KENNETH J'. TOBIN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNORS TO Y,

CAMEL COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS CAR DOOR CONSTRUCTION Application led July 26,

The present invention relates to car door construction and particularly to improvements in the rolling and supporting means for freight car doors.

It is customary Vpractice to use rollers either at the top or bottom for carrying the weight of the door and permitting easy sliding movement. Freight cars are often shunted with the doors unlatched and either in open or partly open positions. Then the doors are slammed back and forth resulting in unnecessary and uneven wear of the rollers and tracks. Frequently, flat spots are worn in the rollers or grooves in the tracks, requiring replacement of parts.

Various constructions have been proposed, but have not proved economically satisfactory, whereby the weight of the car door is carried directly by fixed parts of the car and the rollers are relieved. The door is adjusted to be lifted to transfer its weight to the rollers and allow sliding movements. Generally in the previous arrangements the rollers are held by brackets which are pivoted directly to the door. .Y

It is an object of the present invention to provide improved and simplified means comprising a small number of parts which may be readily adjusted to existing forms of car doors and whereby the door is automatically seated on a fixed flat surface When not in use, but by a simple lever movement the operator may raise the door and move it on rollers'.

It is a further object to support the door while in use on a roller carriage which is not secured in any way to the door ortracks but merely held by abutments, thereby rendering assembly and replacement of the carriage a simple matter. When the door is seated on rigid parts of the car, the carriage is relieved from supporting any of the weight, butv is prevented from being laterally displaced relative to the door.

It is a further object to so construct the lever and cam means for raising the door and transferring the weight to the roller carriage that there is not required anyidirect attachment between the raising means and the door or the carriage. Althoughv we have disclosed and shall describe one particular embodi- 1929. serial No. 381,316.

ment as adapted to the bottom of a metal door, it will be apparent that many other forms may be constructed according to the particular types of door and whether it is top or bottom supported.

Referring to the drawings- Figure 1 is fragmentary side elevational view of a house car having the present improvements applied thereto, the door being shown in lowered position;

Figure 2 is similar to Figure 1, but showing the door in raised-position supported by the rollers;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the plane indicated by 3-3 in Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figures 4 and 5 are detail front and side views of the lever handles and the integral cam means;

Figure 6 is a fragmetary horizontal section on dthe plane indicated by 6-6 in Figure 1; an

Figure 7 is a fragmentary elevation of a position of the cam means illustrating the operation thereof.

In the embodiment shown, 10 is a customary carside and 11 is a metal sliding door having the corrugations l2. It will be appreciated that the door could be formed of wood or wood and metal, according to standard construction. A side channel 13 serves as a support for the brackets 14 held by rivets 15. To the ends of the brackets and spaced by fillers 16 is attached, by rivets 17, a track 18 comprising au L-shaped angle beam.

To the lower edge of the door is secured, by the rivets 19, a longitudinal plate 20, which extends throughout the width of the door and below the top of the track 18. Normally, when the door is not being moved, the lower edge of the plate 20 rests directly on the fillers 16` which are between the track and the brackets. Thus the Weight of the Adoor is normally carried by flat contacting surfaces and rigid parts of the car. However, means are provided whereby the weight may be transferred to roller means by lifting the door.

Also secured by the rivets 19 to the lower edge of the door is a short housing plate 21 substantially Z-shaped in cross section and including a vertical attaching flange 22, a horizontal offset 23 and a vertical depending flange 24. The flange 24 depends adjacent to the track 18, as will be most clearly apparent in Figure 3. The housing plate has a pair of elongated openings 25 in the flange 24, for a purpose which will be later apparent. T he other parts consisting of the roller means and the lifting or raising means need not be directly secured in any manner to the door or the side of the car.

There is shown a carriage 26 comprising a longitudinal channel 27 and integral forked ends 28. Pivot bearing pins 29 are carried by the forked ends 28 and serve as bearings for the rollers 30. The channel 27 is held for relative vertical sliding movement between the flange 24 of the housing plate and s the back plate 20. The rollers 3() rest on the track 18 and support the carriage. rEhe carriage is low hung, in that the axes of the rollers are above the top part of the channel member 27.

Welded to or otherwise formed on the top flange of the channel members 27 of the carriage are spaced pairs of lugs 31-31. Between each pair of lugs is centered the fulcrumed end of an operating lever. In Figures 4 and 5 appear detail views of one operating lever comprising a lower fulcrum end 33 and an offset and upwardly extending handle 34. The handle portion is slightly outwardly inclined from a vertical lever portion 35 so as to be spaced from the corrugated side of the door integral with the lower end of the lever, and extending laterally from the fulcrum portion are a pair of cam lugs 36 presenting a flat upper surface 37. Ribs 38 may be used to strengthen the lower portion of the lever. The lever, together with the cam lugs, may be assembled by passing the handle portion through one of the elongated openings 25, previously mentioned as being in the housing plate 21. This will bring the fulcrumed end between a pair of lugs 31 on the roller carriage and the flat surface of the cam -lugs will be closely adjacent to the horizontal flange 23 of the housing, as will be seen from Figure 3. The other lever 39 is formed in the same manner, except that it does not have a handle. The levers are connected by the horizontal link 40 secured to each lever by pivot pins 41. Each of the levers is normally in a vertical position.

By referring to Figures 1 and 2 and the detail view of Figure 7, the operation will be understood. The operator may, by a lateral push or pull applied to the normally vertical lever handle, cause the lower operating ends of the levers to be turned and bring one lug 36 of each pair into thrust engagement with the door through the horizontal flange of the housing plate. The levers may be moved until the other lug 36 of each pair engages the top of the carriage and thereby acts as a stop.

A very slight vertical movement is suflicient to relieve the weight from the fixed brackets and transfer the weight of the door to the roller carriage. The door may then be slidably moved by continuing the pressure upon the handle. Immediately upon relieving the pressure upon the handle, the door will drop and seat in a stationary position.

T he operation is simple and efficient, a high leverage may be attained, relatively few parts are required, and the assembly is facilitated due to the lack of fastening means.

Many modifications and changes may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention as expressed in the appended claims. Y

We claim- 1. In combination, a sliding door, a relatively fixed track, a. housing rigidly associated with said door, said housing comprising vertical side walls, a top wall, and an open bottom, a carriage retained in position during relative movement of the door by the side walls of said housing, rollers traveling on said track supporting said carriage, and means operative to `support the weight of said door on said carriage comprising a. manually operable lever fulcrumed on said carriage and having a cam portion for raising the door.

2. In combination, a sliding door, a relatively fixed track, a housing rigidly associated with said door, said housing comprising side walls, a top wall, and an open bottom, a carriage retained in position during relative movement of the door by the side walls of said housing, rollers traveling on said track supporting said carriage, and means operative to support the weight of said door on said carriage, said means comprising a pair of inter-connected levers, each of said levers being fulcrumed on said carriage and having eamming portions for raising the door.

3. In combination, a sliding door, a relatively fixed track, a housing rigidly associated with said door, said housing comprising side walls, a top wall and an open bottom, a carriage retained in position during relative movement of the door by the side walls of said housing, rollers traveling on said track supporting said carriage, the front side wall of said housing having an opening formed therein, and a lever extending through said opening having an operating end enclosed within said housing, said operating end beingfulcrumed on said carriage and including cam lugs arranged to transmit a vertical thrust to said door and support the weight of said door upon said carriage upon an operative movement of said lever.

4. In combination, a car side having a door opening, a door slidable relative to said ear side, said door being normally free to gravitally seat on rigid portions of said car side, a

track rigidly associated with said car side, rollers adapted to travel on said track, a carriage to which said rollers are rotatively secured, a housing plate associated with an edge of said door, said carriage being retained in a longitudinal opening formed between the said housing plate and said door, said door being free for vertical movement relative to said carriage, and means for raising said door and supporting the weight thereof on said carriage, said means comprising a lever having an operating end extending through said housing plate and fulcrumed on said carriage, said operating end including a cam surface arranged to bear against and transmit an upward thrust to said door upon movement of saidlever.

5. In a house car having a door opening, a slidable door mounted to normally frictionally seat upon the relatively stationary car side adjacent one margin of the door opening, a roller carriage adapted to be supported by and to travel on a relatively stationary portion of the car side, a pair of rollers each of which is carried at one end of said carriage, said door and carriage forming relatively opposed bearing surfaces, a pair of rockable cam members mounted to turn about axes perpendicular to the plane of the door to engage said opposed bearing surfaces and a single operating lever connected to actuate both of said cam members to lift said door vertically relative to said carriage to support the weight of said door on said rollers for sliding movement of said door.

6. In a house car having a door opening, a slidable door mounted to normally frictionally seat upon the relatively stationary car side, a pair of rollers adapted to be supported by and to travel on the relatively stationary car side, a connecting member between said rollers, a housing plate secured at its upper edge to said door, said housing plate and said door serving to retain said connecting member against displacement during relative vertical movement therebetween, said housing plate and said connecting member forming substantially parallel bearing surfaces and a pair of rockable cam y members arranged to be supported by said connecting member enclosed by said housing plate and means to rotate said cam members upon axes perpendicular to the door to en- 55 gage said bearing surfaces and lift said door relative to the car side to transfer the weight of said door to said rollers.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this day of July, 1929.

60 FREDERICK C, HEINEN.

KENNETH J. TOBIN. 

